Dry-pipe valve.



P. EVANS.

DRY PIPE VALVE.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE I6. 1910.

l ,302144 Paieu'ed Apr. 29, i919.

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P. EVANS.

DRY PIPE VALVE.

APPLICATION FILEDJUNE16|9|5.

Patented-Apr, 29, 1919.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

@I [LC L L' P. EVANS.

DRY PIPE VA APPLICATION FILED Iu E .4916.

l ,302, 144;, Patented Apr. 29, 1919.

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DRY-PIPE VALVE.

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Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aipr. 29, 1919.

Application filed .Tune 16, 1916. Serial No. 103,995.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, PownLL EVANS, a citizen of the United States, residing in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, have invented Dry- Pipe Valves, of' which the following is a specification.

One object of my invention is to provide a dry pipe valve for sprinkler systems which in addition to being relatively compact in construction and reliable in action, shall have its parts so arranged as to permit of their being conveniently and quickly set in positions ready for operation, the design and assembly of its elements being such that they cannot be easily blocked in place.

The invention further contemplates means for insuring' the unseatingi of one of the valves and the seating of another, under conditions of operation.

These objects and other advantageous ends l secure as hereinafter set forth, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which,

Figures land 2 are vertical sections showing various parts of the valve in their set and in their released positions respectively;

Figs. 3 and 4 are horizontal sections on the lines 3 3 and 4 4, respectively, Fig. 1; and

Fig. 5 is a detached perspective view illustrating the train of mechanism connecting the water and controlling valves forming part of my invention.

In the above drawings, 1 represents a casing having an inlet opening 2 connected to a source of water supply and provided with an outlet 3 designed to be connected to the air pipe of a sprinkler system. This casing is pro-vided with a partition 4 extending across its middle portion and having an opening in which is mounted a valve seat 5, there beingan air valve or clapper 6 mounted on a transverse spindle 7 so as to be capable of coperating with said seat to cut off the lower chamber 9 from the upper chamber 8. This valve operates within said upper chamber, and between the lower chamber 9 and the inlet 2 is mounted a second valve seat 10 having a cooperating valve or clapper 1.1. Said second valve has a centrally placed stud 12 projecting upwardly through a cross piece 13 which extends between two arms 14 mounted on a pivot spindle 15. These arms have extensions 16 designed to be respectively engaged by suitably placed lugs 18 extending' from the sides of a lever structure 17 constituting a swinging member pivotally mounted on a transverse spindle 19. This lever structure, as shown in Fig. 5, is preferably made as a casting having two side members connected by integral cross niembers and an intermediate web.

That side of the valve casing 1 farthest from the pivot spindles 7 and 15 is preferably made substantially fiat and has in it two openings in which are respectively mounted valve seats 20 and 21. Of these the first opens into the chamber 9 and is designed to receive a valve 22 pivotally connected by a pin 23 to the upper end of the lever structure 17, being formed with an elongated stem 24 extended through the opening in the valve seat 20. The laterally extended outer end of this stem is designed to engage a fiat surface on the lower end of a depending' arm 60 hung from a pin 61V mounted to extend between the side members of a second lever structure 27. The latter is rotatably carried on a spindle 41 journaled in bearings provided by lugs 62 and 63 projecting from the outer surface of the casing l and has threaded into it a bolt or set screw 26 positioned to bear upon the arm 60 in line with the stem The lever structure 27 is movably connected with the stem 24 through a link 64 which is more or less loosely pinned to each of said members as shown in Fig. 1, being designed to transmit movement from the lever structure to the stem as the former swings away from the casing l, with a view 'to insuring the outward movement and ultimate seating of the valve 22.

Theaperture in which the valve seat 21 is mounted opens into the chamber 8 and has a valve 28 pivoted on a spindle 29 in said chamber, the face of the valve seat being preferably plane and inclined into said cham-ber so that the valve tends to remain in its closed position. Said seat 21 has two outwardly projecting, substantially parallel lugs 30 between which extends a pin 31 serving' as a fulcrum for a latch in the form of a lever 32 of the 'rst order. Said latch is provided with an elongated slot 33 to permit of its bodily movement on the pin 31 and one of its arms is designed to coact with a lug 34 projectingfrom the outer face of the valve 28 through the seat 21, while its other arm engages a hook 35 forming part of a weight structure 36. The latter is integral with or rigidly connected to a transversely extending spindle 37, and as shown in Fig. 4, lies to one side of a vertical plane passing through the hook 35, the latch 32, lug 34 and the center of the valve 28.

As indicated in Fig. 3, this same planey centers of the valves 11 and 22, the lever 27 and a second latch 38 pivotally mounted on a pin 39 carried by the upper part of said member 27. rlhis latter latch has one arm formed as a downwardly bent hook designed to enter a notch formed in an enlarged portion 40 of the pivot spindle 37 for the weight 36. As shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the lever 27 is in the form of a hollow curved arm mounted to swing on or with a pivot pin or spindle 41 and has its upper end so shaped as to overhang a portion of the latch 38 in such manner as to prevent the hooked end thereof from swinging forwardly and down beyond a predetermined position.

The lower part of the casing 1 immediately below the vertical face in which the valve seats 2O and 21 are mounted is eX- tended to form a cup or container 43, above which are mounted the two halves 44 and 45 of an auxiliary casing designed to inclose those parts of the above described mechanism which lie outside of the main casing 1. 1t is noted that the valve seats 5 and 10 are preferably vertically in line with each other and that the valve 6 as well as the cross piece 13 and the valve 28 have bu`ers 46, 47 and 65 designed to prevent damage in case they should be violently moved from their seats. Likewise the weight 36` has a buffer 42 placed to engage the lug 62 so as to lessen the shock of falling from the set to the released position. i

As indicated in Figs. 3 and 4, the chambers 8 and 9 have side openings 50 and 51 to permit of access to the interior of the casing and in putting the apparatus into use the plates 52 and 53 which normally close these openings are removed to permit closing of the valves 6 and 11. As previously noted, the valve 28 normally remains in a closed position, so that if air under the necessary pressure be admitted to the chamber 8, both it and the valve 6 will be held shut by a definite ture 36 may now be raised from the position shown in Fig. 2 to that shown in Fig. 1, whereupon its hook 35 causes the lever 32 to move bodily upward on its pivot pin 31 and passes under its downwardly projecting arm, thereby pressing its other arm against the lug or projection 34 from the valve 28, which remains seated owing to the air pressure upon it.

If now the lever 27 be swung upwardly, the link 64 with the stem 24 is forced inwardly until the end of the latterl drops onto the projecting end of the arm 60 in line with the bolt or screw 26. At the same time the hooked end of the latch 38 enters the notch force. The weight struc-v in the enlarged portion 40 of the spindle 37 and holds its associated parts in the positions shown in Fig. 1. wing to the inward movement of 4the stem 24 and valve 22, the lugs 18 of the inner lever structure 17 respectively engage the lugs 16 on the arms 14 which carry the valve y11.

Water under pressure may now be ad mitted to the inlet 2, but is prevented from entering the chamber 9 since the valve 1-1 is effectually held toits seat by the train of mechanism above described. 1f, however, the air pressure in the chamber 8 falls below a predetermined point, as would be the case in the event of the opening of one or more sprinkler heads in the system, the valve 28 will swing inwardly to a greater or less eX- tent, taking away fro-m the latch 32 the support provided by its lug 34. Said latch therefore turns on its supporting spindle 31, releasing the weighted structure 36 which immediately falls into the position shown in Fig. 2. Such movement'of the weight turns its spindle 37 and releases the hooked end of the latch 38, allowing the lever 27 to swing outwardly and down and thus removing the support previously provided for the valve stem 24. Under the upward pressure of the water upon the valve 11, this latter will causey the inside lever 17 to disw engage the lugs 16 of the valve-carrying arms 141 so that the stem 24 is forced outwardly until the valve 22 engages and closes` the opening in the seat 20 ,-it being noted that this action is accelerated and insured by the outside lever 27, which thro-ugh the link 64, positively forces the stem and valve 22 to the seating position of the latter. The opening of the valve11 admits to the chamber 9 the water under pressure from the supply system, from whence it passes through the seat 5 after opening the valve 6, into the chamber 8 and from thence to the outlet 3 into the supply pipe of the sprinkler system.

By reason of the construction above described 1 am enabled to arrange the various parts outside of the valve casing 1 in a compact Vmanner so that they do not project for any considerable distance and at the same time provide a combination which will possess the reliability and certainty of action required in apparatus of the class to which my invention belongs. Moreover, as shown in Fig. 2, when the valve is opened there is provided a straight unobstructed water passage through the casing, and the valve 22 is necessarily moved to its closed position, by reason of the action of the weight 36 transmitted through the link 64.

I claim 1. The combination in a dry pipe valve of a easing; main air and water valves and an auxiliary air valve; a lever mounted outside of the casing; means whereby said lever is normally prevented from swinging by the auxiliary air valve; means Ioperatively connecting said lever With the Water valve 'and including a member passing through the Wall of the casing; with a link additional to said means connecting said member to said lever.

2. The combination in a dry pipe valve of a casing; main air and Water valves and an auxiliary air valve; a lever mounted outside of the casing; means whereby said lever is normally prevented from swinging by the auxiliary air valve; means including an adjustable element operatively connecting said lever with the Water valve and includ ing a member passing through the Wall of the casing; with a link additional to said means connecting said member to said lever.

3. The combination in a dry pipe valve of a casing; main yair and Water valves and an auxiliary air valve; a lever mounted outside of the casing; means whereby said lever is normally prevented from turning on its fulcrum by the auxiliary air valve; means operatively connecting said lever with the Water valve and including a member passing through the vvall of the casing; with a tension element additional to said latter means for connecting said member to said lever.

4. The combination in a dry pipe valve ofa casing; main air and Water valves and an auxiliary air valve; a lever mounted outside of the casing and normally prevented from turning on its fulc-rum by the auxiliary air valve; means operatively connecting said lever with the Water valve and including a member passing through the Wall of the casing; With a tension element additional to said latter means for connecting said member to said lever; and a swinging arm carried fby the lever interposed between the latter and said member.

5. The combination in a dry pipe valve of a casing; main air and Water valves and an auxiliary air valve; a lever mounted outsi-de of the casing and normally held from moving by the auxiliary air valve; a member passing th-rough an opening in the Wall of the casing and including a valve formed to close said opening; means for connecting said member with the Water valve; With other means positively connecting said member to said lever.

6. The combination in a dry pipe valve of a casing having main air and water valves and an auxiliary air valve; a lever mounted outside of the casing and normally held :from moving by the auxiliary air valve; an arm pivoted to the lever; a set screw engag ing said arm; with a member extending through the Wall of the casing in engagement with said arm and operatively connected to the main Water valve.

7. The combination .in a dry pipe valve of a casing; main air and Water valves in the casing; and a system of members operatively connecting said valves t0 cause the air valve to normally hold the Water valve shut; said members including a lever outside of the casing and a valve member extending through an opening in the casing; with means in addition to said system of mem bers for connecting said lever With the valve member to positively move the latter into seating engagement With the casing When said lever is swung on its pivot.

8. The combination in a -dry pipe valve of a casing; main air and Water valves and an auxiliary valve; a spindle journaled outside of the casing; a Weight projecting from the spindle; a latch connecting the auxiliary air valve with the Weight to normally hold the latter raised; a lever having a portion engaging said spindle so as to be thereby held from movement and operative in a plane parallel to the plane of movement of the Weight; With means including a member extending through the Wall of the casing and linked to the lever, for operatively connecting the Weight with the Water valve.

9. The combination in a dry pipe valve of a casing having an air and a Water valve; a system of members connecting said valves including a member connected with the Water valve and extending through the wall of the casing; With a lever normally held from movement by the air valve and linked to as vvell as abutting upon said member.

l0. The combination in a dry pipe valve of a casinghaving air and Water valves; a lever mounted outside of the casing and normally'held from movement by the air valve; a pivoted arm carried by said lever; a stem extending through said casing and abuttin upon said arm; and means connecting said stem and the Water valve.

l1. The combination in a dry pipe valve of a casing having air and Water valves; a lever mounted outside of the casing and normally held from movement by the air valve; a pivoted arm carried by said lever; a stem extending through said casing and abutting upon said arm; means connecting said stem and the Water valve; and a link connecting said stem With the lever.

l2. The combination in a dry pipe valve of a casing having air and Water valves; a lever mounted outside of the casing and normally held from movement by the air valve; a pivoted arm carried by said lever; a stem extending through said casing and abutting upon said larm; means connecting said stem and the Water valve; and a set screvv mounted in the lever for adjusting the position of said arm.

13. The combination in a dry pipe valve of acasing; air and Water valves therein; a system of members operatively connecting said valves and including a hollow lever mounted outside the casing; an arm pivotally mounted Within the hollow' of the lever; and a member extending through the Wall of the casing abutting on said arm.

lll. The combination in a dry pipe valve of a casing; Water and air valves therein; a lever mounted outside oi the casing; means connecting said lever with the Water valve including a strut extending through the Wall of the easing; a hooked member pivoted to the lever; With a Weighted member normally maintained in a raised position by pressure on the air valve and having a portion engaged by the hook on the lever to hold the latter from movement.

15. The combination in a dry pipe valve of a casing; Water and air valves therein; a lever mounted outside of the casing; means connecting said lever with the Water valve including a strut extending through the Wall of the casing; a hooked member pivoted to the lever; With a Weighted member normally maintained in a raised position by pressure on the air valve and having a portion engaged by the hook on the lever to hold the latter from movement; the lever and the Weight being mounted to operate one by the side of the other.

16. The combination in a dry pipe valve of a casing having main air and Water valves and an auxiliary air valve; a seat for said air valve; a lever pivoted to said seat and having an arm operative on the valve; a Weight mounted outside of the casing and held by the lever in a raised position When the auxiliary air valve is closed; with means controlled by said Weight for holding the Water valve closed.

17. The combination in a dry pipe valve of main air and Water valves; an auxiliary air valve having a lug projecting outside of the casing; a lever fulcrumed on the casing and having an arm operative onthe lug; a Weight engaging said lever; and means controlled by the Weight for normally holding'the Water valve closed.

18. The combination in a dry. pipe valve of a casing having a partition dividing it into upper and lower chambers and including a vertical side, there being an inlet and an outlet for the casing, and valve seated openings in the vertical sides of said chambers, the partition having a valve seated opening; valves normally closing the inlet opening and the opening through the partition into the upper chamber; an auxiliary valve for the opening in the vertical side of the upper chamber; a trainl of mechanism mounted to retain the inlet valve closed as long as the auxiliary valve remains closed, said mechanism including an element passing through the side opening of the lower chamber; and a normally open valve for closing said opening When the inlet valve opens.

POWELL EVANS.

Copies of lthis patent may be obtained. for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner oi Patenti@ Washington, JD. O. 

